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APPROVED DLMS CHANGE 45

Use of Both Ownership Code and Purpose Code in 

DLMS for Ammunition

1. ORIGINATOR:

a. Service/Agency: HQ, IOC, USA, for Joint Ammunition 

Management Standard System (JAMSS) Program Office (JPO)

b. Originator: Gary Deitch, Army IOC

2. FUNCTIONAL AREA: Primary: All Inventory Management 

Areas 

3. REQUESTED CHANGE:

a. Title: SMCA Inventory Management

b. Description of Change: Permit the use of both the 

Ownership and Purpose Code to be conveyed in any single 

transaction. 

c. Procedures: No specific procedures other than the 

Implementation Convention (IC) notes. 

d. Alternatives: None known.

4. REASON FOR CHANGE: 

Today under the Single Manager for Conventional 

Ammunition (SMCA) inventory management of joint stock is 

maintained at the ownership code level. The current legacy 

systems constraints prevent the Services from identifying 

their jointly held stock to a specific requirement and/or use. 

In part, the limitation to identify the ammunition to a 

specific purpose within a Service resides with the current 

MILSTRIP and MILSTRAP transaction formats. These transactions 

limit the use of ownership code or purpose code and do not 

allow for the use of both in a single transaction. 

In order to identify and manage stock held for a specific 

requirement, the Services have used the project code in the 

requisition and related transactions. While this current 

practice enables the Services to manage their stock to a 
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certain degree, it does not enable them to manage their assets 

as needed. While the first position of the transaction number 

can in some cases identify the ownership of the stock, in many 

cases it does not. The requirement to track assets within a 

Service to the purpose of the stock for financial 

accountability cannot be adequately met through the use of 

ownership codes alone. Specific example of this requirement 

is for the Navy to segregate assets funded and purchased with 

Special Warfare dollars. These assets held at the single 

manager under today’s conditions can only be identified by the 

Navy ownership code. Transactions, which effect these assets, 

are identified with a specific project code. Special 

processing procedures have been developed to process the 

transaction to the designated purpose code. 

Due to the MILSTRIP/MILSTRAP restriction of either 

ownership code or purpose code not both, perpetuated in the 

DLMS ANSI ASC X12 transactions, the legacy system limitation 

continues. DLMSO note: This proposal originated in the 

ammunition community and is written as commodity specific for 

use with ammunition only. This concept can be further 

expanded under DLMS, to other commodities, if requirements are 

identified. 

5. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

a. Advantages: This change permits the ammunition community 

to have available the management tools needed to manage the 

various tiers and organizational ownership requirements 

inherent in the ammunition community. JAMSS represented the 

initial efforts to implement the full range of DLMS 

transactions across the military services. As the 

implications of implementation are identified, the 

opportunities for different methods of arranging information 

exchange as presented in the ICs are being evaluated and 

feedback is being presented for consideration by DLMSO in the 

hope that all commodities can benefit in a more refined 

statement of the requirements.

b. Disadvantages. The constraints of the 80 record position 

Defense Logistics Standard System formats do not allow for 

both ownership code and purpose code entry simultaneously. If 

conversion from DLMS to DLSS is required, either ownership 

code or purpose code will not be able to convert to the DLSS 

format. Accordingly use of both codes in a single transaction 

should be restricted either to a purely DLMS environment or, 
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by agreement of the participants, if one party is not in DLMS. 

6. IMPACT:

 a. Data Content/Procedures: All ICs which provide for 

entry of ownership code and purpose code data will require 

modification of the implementation note at the LQ01 level as 

follows (change is identified by bold, italicized print): 

“Use code 99 or A1 (but not both), except for ammunition where 

both codes may be used. Use of both codes for ammunition is a 

DLMS enhancement. If communicating with a DLSS system, only 

one of the codes may be received by the recipient's automated 

processing system." 

 b. Publication: DoD 4000.25-M, DLMS Manual. Update DLMS 

Supplement notes as indicated.